Prepared by

JISNA K JACOB
Roll no: 07

PERMEABILITY

What is

permeability?

Property of a soil which permits the flow of water

Permeability is defined as the property of a porous
material which permits the passage or seepage of water
through its interconnecting voids.

It is a very important Engineering property

gravels

highly permeable

stiff clay

least permeable

Permeability through soil is important for the

following engineering problems:

Calculation of uplift pressure under hydraulic structure and

their safety against piping
Ground water flow towards wells and drainage of soil
Calculation of seepage through the body of earth dams and
stability of slopes
Determination of rate of settlement of a saturated
compressible soil layer

Flow of water through soils may either be a

laminar flow or a turbulent flow
Each fluid particle travel
along a definite path
which never crosses the
path of any other
particle

Paths are irregular and

twisting, crossing at
random

Absolute permeability
Coefficient Of
Permeability
Depends not only on the
properties of soil but also
on the properties of water

Independent of the properties

of water
It depends only on the
characteristics of soil
The absolute permeability only
depends on the geometry of the
pore-channel system.

Relative permeability is the ratio of

effective permeability of a particular fluid to its
absolute permeability.

Henry Darcy (1803-1858), Hydraulic Engineer. His law is a

foundation stone for several fields of study

Darcys Law

who demonstrated experimentally that for

laminar flow conditions in a saturated soil, the rate of flow
or the discharge per unit time is proportional to the hydraulic
gradient

q vA

v ki
q kiA
Validity of darcys law - When flow is laminar

Bernoulis Equation:
Total Energy = Elevation Energy + Pressure Energy +
Velocity Energy
Total Head = Elevation Head + Pressure Head +
Velocity Head
2

H z v

2 g g

Total head of water in soil engineering problems is equal to

the sum of the elevation head and the pressure head

q = v . A = k i h
A=k
L

Water In

Pressure Head

ZA

hB
Soil

B
L = Drai
nage

Path
Datum

ZB

Total Head

(q)
Water
out

Pressure Head

i = Hydraulic
Gradient

Elevation Head

hA

Elevation Head

Total Head

Head Loss or
Head
Difference or
Energy Loss
)h =hA - hB

Factors Affecting Permeability

Particle size
Structure of soil mass
Shape of particles
Void ratio
Properties of water
Degree of saturation
Adsorbed water
Impurities in water

Determination Of Coefficient Of
Permeability

Laboratory
Methods

Field Methods

Constant-head
Permeability
Test
Variable-head
Permeability
Test

Pumping-out
Test
Pumping-in
Test

Indirect
Methods

Capillaritypermeability
Test

Computation
From The
Particle Size
From
Consolidation
Test Data

Constant Head Permeability Test

Quantity of water that flows under a given hydraulic gradient
through a soil sample of known length & cross sectional area in a
given time
Water is allowed to flow through the cylindrical sample of soil
under a constant head
For testing of pervious, coarse grained soils

QL
k
Aht
K = Coefficient of permeability
Q = total quantity of water
t = time
L = Length of the coarse soil

Variable head permeability test

Relatively for less permeable soils
Water flows through the sample from a standpipe attached
to the top of the cylinder.
The head of water (h) changes with time as flow occurs
through the soil. At different times the head of water is
recorded.

2.30aL
h1
k
log10
At
h2
t = time
L = Length of the fine soil
A = cross section area of soil
a= cross section area of tube
K = Coefficient of permeability

By Indirect Method
Allen hazens formula

k cD10

Kozeny carman equation

log10 ( kS 2 ) a bn

g w
e
k
(Cs S 2 )T 2 1 e
3

Loudons formula

k Cv wmv

Consolidation test data

constants.,a= 1.365
b=5.15
c=value b/w 100 &
150
T= Tortuosity
S = surface area

Permeability in Stratified Soils

Flow parallel to the plans of stratification

q kiA
q k xiH (k1H1 k2 H 2 kn H n )i
k1H1 k2 H 2 kn H n
kx
H

Flow normal to the plans of stratification

Soil Permeability Classes

Permeability is commonly measured
in terms of the rate of water flow
through the soil in a given period of
time.

REFERENCES
K.R.Arora Soil Mechanics & Foundation Engineering
Gopal Ranjan & A.S.R.Rao Basic & Applied Soil Mechanics
B.C.Punmia Soil Mechanics & Foundation
T.William Lambe(1969) soil mechanics
Ernst and Sohn (2002) Geotechnical Engineering Hand Book

In this TOPIC you have learned:

About permeability, what it is, how it is

defined and measured !